Update 3-7-14: LG F70 is now available in India for 18,499. Price seems quite steep and we expect this to come down in next few weeks.
LG had showcased its budget 4G LTE device, the F70 back at the MWC 2014 and has now announced its official launch. The launch details for the global markets have also been announced and the rollout will begin in early May in Europe which will be followed by a rollout in Asia, Central and South America and the last rollout will be in North America. The country wise details will be announced in the coming few weeks. Its pricing has not been announced but we expect it to cost around the Rs 15,000 mark. Let us take a quick review of the upcoming smartphone.
Camera and Internal Storage
The LG F70 comes with a 5MP rear camera which gets mated with a LED flash for aiding low light imaging. It is not among the best 5MP snappers on offer but is just an average snapper. You can expect it to be the right partner for those occasional clicks. Joining it is a VGA front snapper for selfies and video calling.
There are two internal storage variants which are 4GB and 8GB and the same can be expanded by another 32GB with the help of a microSD card slot. This is what you get on almost every budget device and the F70 wouldn’t cost you a fortune either.
Battery and Processor
The battery capacity of the F70 is 2,440 mAh which is quite good for a budget device. The device makes use of 4G LTE connectivity which is expected to drain the battery a bit faster and considering the fact that the other set of specifications are pretty modest, the F70 will surely last you about a day.
Under the hood of the F70 is a 1.2 GHz Snapdragon 400 processor which is also present on the Moto G. The processor has already showcased what it is capable of and it will surely take care of all your application and gaming needs if you do not push it a lot.
Display and Features
The display unit of the F70 is a 4.5 inch capacitive IPS LCD display with a resolution of 800 x 480 pixels. It translates into a pixel density of 207 ppi and you can expect a really crisp display unit but is a one which would be just average.
It runs on the latest version of Android which is 4.4 KitKat and is quite a good thing for a device on a budget. It has been bestowed upon with a 1GB RAM so it will surely take care of your multitasking needs decently well. The much talked about LG Knock code makes its way on to the device as well which allows you to choose a pattern to wake up your device.
Comparison
The F70 brings 4G LTE connectivity on a budget and there not many devices on sale currently that will be going up against it. It will have its chief competitor as the Moto G, the budget device Xolo LT900 and the soon to be launched Micromax budget 4G LTE device.
What we like
- Processor
- 4G LTE on a budget
- Android 4.4 KitKat
What we don’t like
- Low display reolution
- Camera could have been better
Key Specs
| Model | LG F70 |
| Display | 4.5 Inch , WVGA |
| Processor | 1.2 GHz Quad Core |
| RAM | 1 GB |
| Internal Storage | 4 GB/ 8 GB, Expandable |
| OS | Android 4.4 Kitkat |
| Camera | 5 MP/ VGA |
| Battery | 2440 mAh |
| Price | 18,499 INR |
Conclusion
Pricing will be key for the success of the LG F70 as the spec sheet is not really impressive barring the processing unit and RAM. It comes across as a good budget Android device with 4G LTE connectivity and runs the latest version of Android too. 4G is still not really prevelant in India so LG needs to go a bit careful with the pricing of the device.
